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Author Topic: devotion to greek gods  (Read 1438 times)

EclecticWheel

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devotion to greek gods
« on: May 28, 2015, 04:53:42 pm »
I'm researching different forms of devotions in different religions.  I've come across a lot of Internet material about Hellenic Reconstructionism, but not a lot about what an eclectic practice might look like that's centered around the Greek pantheon.

I know this practice could look like just about anything given the nature of eclecticism, but I'm looking for something -- a website, a book -- that details a person's non-reconstructionist devotion centered on Greek deities or examples of what that could look like.

I have an idea of what it could look like in Wicca, but I'm more interested in something outside of a Wiccan or Reconstructionist context.
My personal moral code:

Love wisely, and do what thou wilt.

zasadilk

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Re: devotion to greek gods
« Reply #1 on: May 28, 2015, 08:25:05 pm »
Quote from: EclecticWheel;175488
I'm researching different forms of devotions in different religions.  I've come across a lot of Internet material about Hellenic Reconstructionism, but not a lot about what an eclectic practice might look like that's centered around the Greek pantheon.

I know this practice could look like just about anything given the nature of eclecticism, but I'm looking for something -- a website, a book -- that details a person's non-reconstructionist devotion centered on Greek deities or examples of what that could look like.

I have an idea of what it could look like in Wicca, but I'm more interested in something outside of a Wiccan or Reconstructionist context.
I'd be really curious to see what you find in response to this.  

For me,  I just started a practice honoring the hellenic Theoi (I made a post asking about it not too long ago) and I like some aspects of witchcraft religions (which reconstructionism doesn't have,  at least as far as I know...  As I said,  I'm still new to all this).

All that being said,  for my devotions, I have a book of Christian devotions that I use by converting to my own devices. I also have started every morning and every evening washing my face and hands and then offering prayers of Thanksgiving and honor to the 12, using their epithets.  I have a book of Earth prayers,  so I offer one of them to the gods as well. Then I planted a strawberry plant in honor of Hermes (my patron essentially),  so I make sure that it has enough water at this point too.

I also give a more informal prayer as I lay in bed at night.

EclecticWheel

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Re: devotion to greek gods
« Reply #2 on: May 28, 2015, 08:34:43 pm »
Quote from: zasadilk;175499
I'd be really curious to see what you find in response to this.  

For me,  I just started a practice honoring the hellenic Theoi (I made a post asking about it not too long ago) and I like some aspects of witchcraft religions (which reconstructionism doesn't have,  at least as far as I know...  As I said,  I'm still new to all this).

All that being said,  for my devotions, I have a book of Christian devotions that I use by converting to my own devices. I also have started every morning and every evening washing my face and hands and then offering prayers of Thanksgiving and honor to the 12, using their epithets.  I have a book of Earth prayers,  so I offer one of them to the gods as well. Then I planted a strawberry plant in honor of Hermes (my patron essentially),  so I make sure that it has enough water at this point too.

I also give a more informal prayer as I lay in bed at night.

 
Could you tell me how your approach to worship and ritual involving the Greek pantheon differs from that of a Reconstructionist?
My personal moral code:

Love wisely, and do what thou wilt.

zasadilk

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Re: devotion to greek gods
« Reply #3 on: May 28, 2015, 08:47:11 pm »
Quote from: EclecticWheel;175500
Could you tell me how your approach to worship and ritual involving the Greek pantheon differs from that of a Reconstructionist?
I guess it's because I cast spells.  I use circles and work with the elements,  which I don't think is a part of straight reconstruction stuff

Sobekemiti

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Re: devotion to greek gods
« Reply #4 on: May 28, 2015, 10:28:20 pm »
Quote from: EclecticWheel;175488
I'm researching different forms of devotions in different religions.  I've come across a lot of Internet material about Hellenic Reconstructionism, but not a lot about what an eclectic practice might look like that's centered around the Greek pantheon.

I know this practice could look like just about anything given the nature of eclecticism, but I'm looking for something -- a website, a book -- that details a person's non-reconstructionist devotion centered on Greek deities or examples of what that could look like.

I have an idea of what it could look like in Wicca, but I'm more interested in something outside of a Wiccan or Reconstructionist context.

 
To be honest, I mostly just play it by ear, and decide what the rite actually needs to achieve, and how best to do that based on the purpose of it. I do refer to the traditional ritual structures for inspiration, but I'm not strict about it. I'll write something modern if that suits it best, or adapt other rituals to suit my purpose.

Part of this play-by-ear approach is that I mostly operate from a Kemetic framework, with ADF elements, and I'm not recon by any stretch of the imagination, nor do I pretend to be. I also don't offer devotion to all the Olympians, just to the ones I work with, namely Hekate, Artemis, and Hermes. Hestia also gets honoured first and last in some of my rites. I've got another ritual structure I'm playing around with that I want to use for magic, that's sort of Graeco-Kemetic, in that I call the four directions, as well as heaven and earth (but it's not a circle, not in a Wiccan sense of a cast circle, because I cast N-S, E-W, H-E), and it sort of proceeds from there in a mixture of Greek, Kemetic, and modern elements. I'm going to go back and tweak it a little, I think, but it's certainly worth persisting with. I'd only use it for magical rituals, rather than straight offering or devotional rituals, which are much simpler.

For a while now, I've been honouring Hekate at the new moon, and Artemis at the full moon, using modified modern rituals, and those have been fine. I'm in the process of rejigging that now, and moving to an ADF-style daily devotion for the Theoi, once I figure out when I can fit it in. The regularity is what I'm after, not conforming to the old traditional recon ritual structures, so it'll be whatever works best. I've been practising long enough to know what I need in my daily devotions, and it'll conform to those guidelines, because I'm much more likely to stick to it than if I made it too long or complicated for what I can comfortably manage every day.
Sobekemiti | Hekatean Witch, Kemetic Orthodox Shemsu, Sobek Devotee | My pronouns are they/she

Louisvillian

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Re: devotion to greek gods
« Reply #5 on: June 03, 2015, 08:52:03 pm »
Quote from: zasadilk;175501
I guess it's because I cast spells.  I use circles and work with the elements,  which I don't think is a part of straight reconstruction stuff

It depends on what one is trying to reconstruct. Hellenic and Hellenistic religion had many facets, of which the public worship of the gods was only one. Household worship was part of it as well. Mystery religions were a thing. And historically, ancient people did practise magic and divination in private, unsanctioned ritual. It's not talked about a whole hell of a lot, but it is attested to in archaeology. People did plenty of things that were outside of the norm.

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